“A toast to a job well done. One Genetic Compiler delivered to our clients, and one fat payday for all of us.”
Huw grinned as he took a swig from his beer, the stuff was noticeably cheap and tasted like water with dirt in it, but the celebration made everything better. Around him the rest of his crew were in various states of sobriety, some having gotten an early start on the night festivities.
The apartment they’d bought out and converted into a common room for the whole crew was a mess. Everyone had pitched in their own stuff, so none of the furniture matched and the room was a mix of different styles. One of the walls held a knockoff renaissance painting right next to a lunar impressionist piece, and the contrast made both look terrible. A carpet lined with neon threads screwed with the lighting of the room, though no one wanted to remove it because then someone would get roped into cleaning up the stain from the time Val and Lloyd had their drinking contest.
Still, there were few places where Huw felt more comfortable.
He made his rounds lie he always did, touching base with everyone and getting an idea for where they were in life. Frazer was looking to upgrade his prosthetic, allegedly because his current one didn’t quite have enough fine motor control but Huw suspected that it had more to with changing trends in fashion. The new model he was looking at was admittedly very nice, a sleek piece with some built-in lighting. The two of them ended up taking for some time about engravers in the city who could add some detail to the piece, though Frazer thought a more minimalist look might work better. Val and Jillian were still trying to find the right venue for their wedding. Being a female couple put them in a rough spot in Neo Miami, and while no place would turn away a legal union the couple wanted to find an area where they wouldn’t be harassed on their big day. Huw made a mental note to try and find some places to recommend. Fai and Lloyd were having some argument about the new release over at Moonview. Lloyd considered himself an art connoisseur, and was always the first to share his opinion on whatever new exhibit or show had caught his eye. Apparently, his view on the new Cowardly Cop movie was at odds with Fai’s opinion of it, and she had leapt to its defense with her usual passion. The argument had been going on for the past three weeks. Huw thought that was much longer than such a trivial conflict should last, but it seemed his wife disagreed and was prepared to die on her hill if need be. Huw was reasonably sure it was just because she enjoyed arguing that it kept going. Lastly, of course, there was the new guy.
Jason had fit in with the crew fairly easily, he was a quiet man but that wasn’t always a bad thing, especially when surrounded by so many more boisterous personalities, and him being so pivotal to the job had made it easy for the rest to accept a new member. It was rare these days to find such a talented mech pilot, automation had made that job a dying breed, but if you didn’t want every action reported to the company that built the thing you needed a human in control. And Huw really didn’t want Shemi finding their stolen mech breaking into Bogart Labs, well he didn’t want Shemi finding the mech regardless but it being responsible for a break-in at a rival would invite the kind of scrutiny that got either a company hit squad or a cop raid.
Huw’s worry with Jason was different. A mech was just what they needed for their last job, but now the crew had a mech and a pilot while most jobs needed neither. He wasn’t going to cut the man loose, both for the practical reason of it being a poor choice to betray a man who knew your secrets and for more sentimental ones, but to stay a part of the crew either Jason needed to learn new skills or the crew needed bigger jobs. Getting more ambitious made sense. They could all use the money, Huw was happy living his current life but he knew the others would appreciate the extra income, and they had the skills to pull of larger jobs. And yet. Neo Miami’s cops were no joke, and Huw had kids to worry about. In the end, it wasn’t entirely Huw’s decision. They’d follow if he made it, if he said ‘this is how things are going to be.’ But Huw had become a thief in the first place because he hated other people deciding his life for him, and he wasn’t about to do that to his friends. So, he explained the situation to his crew and put it to a vote.
Frazer wanted to get a new ride, something he could work on as a hobby.
Val wanted to upgrade her and Jillian’s entertainment suite.
Jillian was worried about putting too much work on herself at a time that was already so busy.
Lloyd wanted to buy some originals, the kind of works that made him love art in the first place.
Jason needed the money for his wife’s medical bills.
And Fai was always up for a challenge.
With Huw, the vote was 5-2 in favor. It seemed they were going big.
Huw grinned as he took a swig from his beer, the stuff was noticeably cheap and tasted like water with dirt in it, but the celebration made everything better. Around him the rest of his crew were in various states of sobriety, some having gotten an early start on the night festivities.
The apartment they’d bought out and converted into a common room for the whole crew was a mess. Everyone had pitched in their own stuff, so none of the furniture matched and the room was a mix of different styles. One of the walls held a knockoff renaissance painting right next to a lunar impressionist piece, and the contrast made both look terrible. A carpet lined with neon threads screwed with the lighting of the room, though no one wanted to remove it because then someone would get roped into cleaning up the stain from the time Val and Lloyd had their drinking contest.
Still, there were few places where Huw felt more comfortable.
He made his rounds lie he always did, touching base with everyone and getting an idea for where they were in life. Frazer was looking to upgrade his prosthetic, allegedly because his current one didn’t quite have enough fine motor control but Huw suspected that it had more to with changing trends in fashion. The new model he was looking at was admittedly very nice, a sleek piece with some built-in lighting. The two of them ended up taking for some time about engravers in the city who could add some detail to the piece, though Frazer thought a more minimalist look might work better. Val and Jillian were still trying to find the right venue for their wedding. Being a female couple put them in a rough spot in Neo Miami, and while no place would turn away a legal union the couple wanted to find an area where they wouldn’t be harassed on their big day. Huw made a mental note to try and find some places to recommend. Fai and Lloyd were having some argument about the new release over at Moonview. Lloyd considered himself an art connoisseur, and was always the first to share his opinion on whatever new exhibit or show had caught his eye. Apparently, his view on the new Cowardly Cop movie was at odds with Fai’s opinion of it, and she had leapt to its defense with her usual passion. The argument had been going on for the past three weeks. Huw thought that was much longer than such a trivial conflict should last, but it seemed his wife disagreed and was prepared to die on her hill if need be. Huw was reasonably sure it was just because she enjoyed arguing that it kept going. Lastly, of course, there was the new guy.
Jason had fit in with the crew fairly easily, he was a quiet man but that wasn’t always a bad thing, especially when surrounded by so many more boisterous personalities, and him being so pivotal to the job had made it easy for the rest to accept a new member. It was rare these days to find such a talented mech pilot, automation had made that job a dying breed, but if you didn’t want every action reported to the company that built the thing you needed a human in control. And Huw really didn’t want Shemi finding their stolen mech breaking into Bogart Labs, well he didn’t want Shemi finding the mech regardless but it being responsible for a break-in at a rival would invite the kind of scrutiny that got either a company hit squad or a cop raid.
Huw’s worry with Jason was different. A mech was just what they needed for their last job, but now the crew had a mech and a pilot while most jobs needed neither. He wasn’t going to cut the man loose, both for the practical reason of it being a poor choice to betray a man who knew your secrets and for more sentimental ones, but to stay a part of the crew either Jason needed to learn new skills or the crew needed bigger jobs. Getting more ambitious made sense. They could all use the money, Huw was happy living his current life but he knew the others would appreciate the extra income, and they had the skills to pull of larger jobs. And yet. Neo Miami’s cops were no joke, and Huw had kids to worry about. In the end, it wasn’t entirely Huw’s decision. They’d follow if he made it, if he said ‘this is how things are going to be.’ But Huw had become a thief in the first place because he hated other people deciding his life for him, and he wasn’t about to do that to his friends. So, he explained the situation to his crew and put it to a vote.
Frazer wanted to get a new ride, something he could work on as a hobby.
Val wanted to upgrade her and Jillian’s entertainment suite.
Jillian was worried about putting too much work on herself at a time that was already so busy.
Lloyd wanted to buy some originals, the kind of works that made him love art in the first place.
Jason needed the money for his wife’s medical bills.
And Fai was always up for a challenge.
With Huw, the vote was 5-2 in favor. It seemed they were going big.